TIFU by buying my son PC parts from his "avoid list" and almost burned to death

Over the past year and a half, all my son has wanted is a Gaming PC. He watches Youtube videos on how to build them, what parts are the best and pretty much anything related to PC Gaming. He even made a full list a few months ago detailing what all he wanted, how much it all was, and what he could do to earn the money. Suffice to say, he was very dedicated to getting this computer. And so I decided to buy him everything on his list for his 13th Birthday. Now since I don't know much of anything about how to build a computer, I just asked for his list and bought the identical part numbers on Amazon. To me it was $600 well spent.

Come his birthday everything has arrived and been nicely displayed on the fireplace. I went to wake him up and made him go to the living room for breakfast. Judging by the reaction he had, I think he shat himself in his excitement. Thank you's and love you's were given and breakfast was eaten. As soon as he finished his plate he started getting ready to build his system, pulling up videos and guides online. He insists that he can do it by himself and so I sit down and watch TV while he works.

After awhile I get up to check on him and he hasn't done anything. I asked him what was wrong and in tears he said that I had bought parts from the wrong list and that the one I bought from was a list of parts he was going to avoid buying. Not even one part was a correct one. No worries, I can just return it all and get the right parts, right? Wrong. Since I was trying to ensure everything was here on time, I ordered the parts over a month ago. The return period was only 30 days. So my son decides to make light of a bad situation and go ahead with building the computer anyway with what he has.

I go back to watching TV and let him do his thing. I fell asleep and when I woke up he had finished building it. He was very excited and I was very proud of him. We went into his room to test it out and after a few minutes of plugging in cables he was ready to turn it on. He pushed the power button and nothing happened. Though as he was assuring me that this was a common problem and that he had probably misplaced a cable, the entire computer went up in flames.

The fire was extinguished and thankfully nobody was hurt. His room was a different story however. His desk was completely scorched as well as any carpet within a 5 foot range of the PC. There was a huge hole in his wall where the fire has burned completely through it. After everything calms down he comes to talk to me and tells me that the power supply he had put on his "avoid list" was recalled for blowing up and bursting in flames. Now his birthday is ruined, his room is torched, I'm out $600 and he's lost one of his dreams right as he was within arms reach of it. We ended the night by renting a hotel and going out to Applebee's. Not ideal.

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TL;DR: Tried to be a great dad and bought my son what I thought was his dream PC. Mistakenly bought from his list of parts to avoid. Power supply was faulty and turned his room into an inferno. Ate Applebee's.

But with what he’ll get above the deductible he still has to fix the smoke damage, repair the wall, and buy a desk. Not sure where the magic money for another computer is coming from. Those 3 will cost more than he gets already.

Lunchbox accidently got placed on a mistakenly left on range burner. Lost the range, the cabinets, and smoke damaged the whole damn house. Insurance covered it. Was a shitty process to get the money and repairs constantly fighting with the underwriter, but my wife is VERY persuasive on the phone and bullied them until they gave us what they said they would to begin with.

There’s a part of me that doesn’t believe this story, to be honest. It’s just that the kid seems to be relatively smart, but sent OP the list of DNB parts.

Did the kid somehow manage to put together a list of parts not to buy that magically are all compatible? I have my own DNB list and not only is it jam-packed with incompatible parts (which are now outdated), but there’s also multiple CPUs, GPUs, Cases, etc... had anyone bought the list for me, they’d be out thousands of dollars.

Father says he doesn’t know anything about tech, hell look at OPs name, he would be having trouble ensuring he’s getting compatible parts, let alone knowing that you only need one CPU/Mobo/GPU, it just... I don’t know man.

Yeah it doesn't make a lot of sense at all. Add to the fact that it's a throwaway account, that it doesn't include a picture when this kind of post that involve material damages often have a picture... I don't want to be cynic but to me it sounds like OP is hoping to get a free PC out of kindness like it happened before on Reddit

OP also managed to put out an electrical fire that was already burning through walls and shit. Drywall and plaster don’t just magically disintegrate when there’s a fire - it takes time for holes to develop and the fire would have had to be a lot bigger and hotter.

PSUs are also encased in metal and virtually all computer cases are mostly metal. There’s hardly anything inside a computer that can actually fuel a fire. Worst case is usually that something fails and causes a short and some smoke or a tiny little flame on a PCB. It can’t magically spread through two layers of metal and set your house on fire.

Sounds like you a lot about fire extinguishers and know very little about electrical fires (and even less about the contents of my house). I'm not saying it's improbable that OP had a fire extinguisher capable of extinguishing an electrical fire.

I'm saying it's near impossible that OP would be able to extinguish a fire so catastrophic that it can defy the laws of physics and burn a hole in his walls in the amount of time (what, maybe 30 seconds?) it takes the average person to go and get their fire extinguisher. Household electrical fires rarely just magically burst into flames at the press of a button. They take time to heat up, they smolder, and you know there's a problem long before there's an actual fire most times, especially when you're sitting 3 feet away.

I realize there's some holes to the story, just too lazy to get out of bed rn so I'm commenting what I can where I can.

But when it comes to fire in general, I never underestimate it.. unless it's a camp fire that I made, then I'm stupid enough to try to pick up flaming logs by hand because we didn't have one of those tong things.

Class D are for exotic metals, magnesium and such. They are usually specialized for a specific metal (something that will put out a magnesium fire may not put out a potassium fire). Class K are just general kitchen fires, not specifically grease, which would be a Class B fire.

Part?? Nothing about this story sounds legit. I've heard of people putting together 'avoid/dnb' lists but to buy everything on the list and it still turn into a functional computer is odd. His DNB list was literally just 1 of every part? Typically its multiples of each part, and as you said, of varying compatibly. That said, the kid had a DNB PSU that was prone to explode and said, welp, fuck its what I got so lets give it a go? Errr uhhhh no....at least I hope not...

I mean, if there were many multiples of each kind of component, it's easy enough to pick one from the list based on price/shipping date etc. Especially if the son said "Hey dad, I need x, y, z components and I made some Amazon lists if you ever want to buy me any of them I'd be stoked! Here's my Amazon ID, you'll find the lists there"

Didn't he say he bought every item on the list? The kid might be just getting started with making his own first computer and all of the parts are part of a list pertaining specifically to a single dream PC build. Not everyone has two or three options of CPUs which would open up the possibility of alternating socket Mobos.

While I agree it sounds ridiculous it isn't entirely impossible especially under the conditions of the situation. What does he have to gain here other than imaginary points on Reddit for a "story" ?

The whole story is confusing. I don't want to write-off the fact that people don't do this but who makes a list of parts not to get? Even at 13. I think anyone would make a list of things they do want and generally this is how it works for birthdays and holidays. Right?

So, assuming there were two lists and the father took the wrong one. Got it. Sounds plausible but assuming everything was on one list, then he'd have multiple parts (bad and good). Confusing.

Assuming there was a seperate list of things not to buy, a concept that doesn't really make sense in the first place as you'd just say "no cheap psu's" and basically be covered, why would you select everything to make a full compatible build?

No- I could understand writing one or two thing down, but not to the extent it would pass for an actual “to buy” list, and I’d probably still put a “NOT” in giant letters in front of it.
I don’t get this at all.

When it comes to electronics, especially PC parts or Integrated circuits, etc., it's a good idea to know what not to buy. Having a list of trash parts is fairly useful. Imo he was smart to have a do not buy list.

I keep a list of IC's and other trash components that I would not buy again as well as ones I would buy again.

But a full and complete 'bad' build? This seems a little fishy to me. If I made a list of bad components and someone bought it I would received multiple power supplies and about 3 nintdeno ds with dead pixels (ah early 2000s nostalgia).

I definitely wouldn't get the parts for a complete compatible build.

Also a build so bad it spontaneously combusts within 5 seconds of turning on... I mean it's possible if you hooked it up to a transformer but regular mains shouldn't do that. Crap power supply usually means breaks after a year not a second. And electrical fires from bad components usually means a hit spot that causes something to smoulder and maybe cathc alight dust or something else flammable... Bursting into flames? I don't buy this

horusr is saying that the dad most likely bought everything on the list, which makes it implausible that the kid actually put together a "don't-buy" list because no one would ever make a "don't-buy" list with exactly one "don't-buy" item for each component. If you were in fact making a "don't-buy" list, you would realistically end up with some components having zero or multiple "don't-buy" items, not exactly one "don't-buy" item for each component.

I don't think even a 13-year-old is dumb enough to think that each component class has only one "don't-buy" item.

The second list happened to have exactly one item listed for each component class. The kid basically put together the complete specification for another computer full of components bad enough that he had to single them out specifically. It doesn't seem plausible.

He could have been trying to build the PC and that was his first draft then as he did more reserche he realized he could get it cheaper/better if he went with a different brand he did spend a whole year researching what he should buy and how to put it together you never know

I’ve been in IT for 10 years and never seen a PSU explode. I’m not saying it’s impossible, but unlikely. Worst I’ve seen is wires burning, a resistor exploding in a 30 year old IBM and a few sparks when someone wedged a RAM board in the wrong way and powered the PC on.

Also, a list like that would probably be more like "no sub i5 processor, AMD only if Ryzen" etc, instead of specific parts. Unless something very specific of course, like this one part will cause issues.

If you trying to insinuate that this whole thing sounds a bit fishy. You’re right, but that’s not the point of my post. A list of things specifically not to buy sounds like something a 13 year old would do.

So you pick the best of what will work, make a list of that, and forget about everything else entirely. Maybe list a second-best pick for each item in case the first is out of stock. I don't get why you need to concern yourself with a junk list at all.

I get having a no buy. After looking at lists and lists of parts and only writing the ones you want, you'll eventually double over things you've eliminated, but not remember that you've already nixed them. Having a no-go list saves wondering why x item isn't on your list and wasting time rediscovering that you already dismissed it for a reason, eg: may burn house down

I get it. After looking at lists and lists of posts and only writing the ones you want, you'll eventually double over things you've eliminated, but not remember that you've anyway nixed them. Having a nogo list saves wondering why x item isn't on your list and wasting rediscovering that you already dismissed it for a reason, eg: may burn house down

Empathy is awesome, and it's holiday season. However, if you have parts laying around and feel like helping OP, please remember to wait for proofs that this happened. So far the story has a lot of wholes (the bigger one is how did OP manage to get a build with compatible parts from a DNB list) I'm not saying it didn't happened but it wouldn't be the first time people try to milk people kindness during holiday season

I think many misunderstood. I never asked that op recieve a free computer. I just believed that perhaps somebody with more technical expertise in that field could put together a comprehensive build list within a given budget.

I test electronics as part of my job, and this doesn't happen. I've mistakenly used 120V on a 240V power supply a few times, and it simply turns off again after a fraction of a second. It has a limited load/resistance, so using half the voltage just means it gets a quarter of the power. The ones that are smart enough to adjust the resistance/current to keep output power constant will run happily at either voltage anyway.

Plugging 240V into a 120V power supply will cause it to blow, but typically it's just the fuse (in the plug or the power supply) and/or the circuit breaker. Sometimes it will work again with a new fuse, and sometimes it won't. I don't think this could start a fire.

What really makes a bang is when one of the big capacitors is soldered onto the board the wrong way around, which is what I'm guessing happened here. After a second or two of it not apparently powering up, it'll suddenly explode. The fluid from the capacitor will leak everywhere and the arcing mains power through this liquid is where all the smoke comes pouring out from. If this happened near something flammable, I could definitely see it catching fire. Since there's no excessive or leaking current (at least until it explodes), it won't trip the power or blow a fuse, which is why it can fail so spectacularly.

I've hooked PSUs up to a variac for stability testing. The good ones can run at ~40 volts without issue, and simply power off when the volts drop lower. I don't run them at that voltage for long. It's to simulate a brief brownout.

The critical thinker in me is strong in this one. I don't believe this story. A avoid list. It went up in flames. His desk was completely scorched and the carpet within 5 foot range of the pc. All of that very unlikely. But why would you make this up.

I hate be cynical on the chance that this is true. But I have no reason to believe it is. If there was a picture of the list, the pc, the damage or really any shred of evidence I might believe this. But it feels like a scam to pray on the good hearted empathy of others.

Yeah, something is fishy here. How do you even decide what goes on the “don’t buy” list? And how did that list contain everything needed to build the PC? He made sure all of his don’t buy parts happened to be compatible with each other? Better not buy this RAM because it isn’t the right generation. Better not buy this hard drive because it still used IDE cables.

Did the dad know enough about computers to pick out a full compatible set of components from the list but not enough to know that every component on the list seemed to be horrible for some reason? Surely the kid didn’t write up a perfectly complete PC build with all compatible parts that were all things the kid didn’t want.

By making a full compatible build, then changing your mind and making a different one, then doing it again and so on until you have a bunch of different fully compatible builds printed out. Then every one that isn't your final choice could be considered a "do not buy" list. It's what I did when I was younger.

That's what I'm assuming, because I know my parents used to do the same. I'd say one thing, and they'd call it what they think it should be called but isn't really accurate. The kid probably said something like "you were meant to use this list, that was an old list I was avoiding", then the dad called it the "avoid list". If you don't assume the writer is infallible, a lot of stories can make more sense.

Hmm yes. Why make a list of “stuff to avoid”, it can be assumed that everything not on the “to buy” list should be avoided. Also you are right that it is strange how compatible those parts are... I would avoid an i9-9900k and I would avoid super cheap AM4 socket boards... Yet those 2 wouldn’t work together! It is VERY hard to believe that so many things could go wrong without a SINGLE red flag being raised...

Someone new to building something. If I'm in the market for a something like a drone, I'll make a list of the stuff I definitely don't want and the top 2 or 3 models I would buy. Also I'm pretty sure that not 100% of the PSUs blew up, and he was trying to make his father feel glad for going the extra mile.

Why though? Can you not assume that anything not on your “buy” list should be avoided? Also if he knew the PSU was junk and STILL used it, then I really think the kid isn’t the brightest. Smart enough to make a list, not smart enough to make the right lists, and stupid enough to risk burning the house down...

Sounds like he made two separate lists and gave his dad the wrong one by accident. I don't think you can really call his kid not bright. I've built a few computers and power supply blowing up has never entered my realm of thought, but I'm on a higher budget probably. He was probably shopping for $20-40 power supplies and was trying to avoid the no-name Chinese ones, whereas someone with a $80-100 for a PSU doesn't really have to much to worry about quality.

But why make a "parts to avoid" list? It can be assumed that anything NOT on the "to buy" list should be avoided right? Also the kid used a KNOWN DEFECTIVE power supply. He knew it was bad, still used it and almost killed his whole family... If it were my kid, they would get a spanking for sure

Because he's building it on a tight budget. Also there are hundreds of different models and brands of power supplies. I would argue that if a power supply has a chance of blowing up, it's up to the manufacturer to not to sell it, and all retailers to recall it immediately. Why should a consumer have to worry about that?

That only works if his list of "good parts" is comprehensive. Do you have a list of people you like and just assume everybody else in the world is garbage? You keep a "bad parts" list to keep track of the parts that you've already screened out and aren't worth further researching.

Complete horseshit. Computers don't just burst into flames. Had it been a bad PSU the motherboard may have started smoking or there might have been a flash of light from the PSU. But nothing in terms of complete combustion.

Hard to when it didn't happen.... Apparently the wall was completely burned through in seconds by a power supply, despite the dad witnessing the start of the fire and presumably rushing to put it out ASAP...

Just a heads up, if you are in the US and planning on trying another "correct" build many PC parts are going to be affected by the tariffs going into effect January 1st. Distributors have been stocking warehouses so there may be some cushion but prices will be going up.

I've never heard of a PSU that would instantly cause a computer to go up in flames like that, even if it were a very cheap one. Most likely your son had it on the wrong voltage setting or somehow connected something very wrong.

I built a PC about a year ago, my dad got handsy with it because he was curious while I was out. He works with metal, so metal shavings/dust fried the entire thing, not a single thing worked. Took me a while to save, not been able to afford a new one since.

Amazon support are really good even after the 30 days you can return things. They care more about service than they do on losing some money. I had a Corsair PSU that started making buzzing noises and at first tried to return directly to corsair as i had an 8 year warranty on it but it took them so long to respond to my questions. So I went onto amazon told them my issues and had it picked up and refunded the next day.

OP fucked up here by going all Michael Bay. The story would have been heart wrenching enough if you turned it on and a bad component fried the mobo and video card. The only way you’d get a fire as big as described would be to stuff a bunch of dried leaves into a case made of cardboard.

You didn't exactly fuck up, yes you made a mistake BUT you were a brilliant dad for trying to get your son exactly what he wanted, and the fact you feel like you fucked up proves just how much you care and love him. So well done for being an awesome dad, who has raised a good son that did the best he could with what he had rather than kicking off like some entitled brats would. You're doing good, and I hope you manage to claim the money back on the insurance or something, so your lad gets his PC. If I had the cash I'd be willing to donate, but I'm sorry all I can offer is my words and best wishes.

Claim on the insurance! If it's a known issue and has been recalled, but they didn't make an effort to contact you to tell you it was recalled (or by the sounds of it, it was recalled before they sold it to you) you should get money back for the parts it destroyed and towards the cost of carpet/desk.

I grew up in a pretty poor single parent home in the 70s and 80s. I was a nerdy kid and loved computers even back then in the pre-internet days. I saved every penny I had for parts and scrounged and hustled as much as I could to complete my PC builds.

I'm an adult now, IT executive for a large organization, money isn't really a problem anymore and my gaming PC reflects that. But, you know what? Saving for months as a kid to get the math coprocessor for my i386 still brings me more joy than my $7k PC build that I just chose parts for and finished in a day.

My point being, this may have been a blessing in disguise. It is probably more important that the boy overcomes adversity to build his own PC and agonizes over every single part. That is how young technologists get the passion that guides them through the tough times in entry level tech jobs.

Also, as a guy that has spent over 30 years touching every bit of tech iron that has come down the pike:

power supply he had put on his "avoid list" was recalled for blowing up and bursting in flames

WTF. That is not in anyway even remotely close to a normal failure scenario for a power supply. I've done disaster recovery work that involved testing power supplies that had been under water, consumed by industrial oxidizers, voltage spiked etc. I have never had even a severely compromised power supply explode with that kind of force.

Your home owners insurance will cover parts, desk carpet. May seem like epic fail but your son gets a do over for his room and you get to teach him how important it is to carry insurance. Honestly the Applebee’s is more of a fail than the power supply from hell. Plus it was a good learning experience for him.

Easy Save here: Home owners claim: Pay your deductible, have your house repaired, buy him all the correct stuff? Waitttttt a minute: Is this TIFU a cover up? Did you buy him all the wrong stuff and fake a fire to burn it all and now you're trying to cover your tracks for insurance. You sly bastard.

Did you contact Amazon and tell them what happened? Chances are very good they would reimburse you for the cost of the parts. Even though it was more than 30 days, they should all be under warranty. And Amazon would take care of it even before that.

Times are different now my friend.. my gpu that cost me 900 bucks 3 years ago can barely run cod at 100 fps... barely. Any card lower than that I would not be able to play cod competitively. It would be 80 fps garbage, it is just awful.

Why would a 13-year-old need to play COD competitively? Last I checked, gaming computers could also be used for just, I don't know, having fun. For which 40-60 fps at 720p/1080p and mid-graphics settings are perfectly adequate. Not to mention that the kid might not even be playing shooters, but rather RPG/RTS titles, where FPS is even less of a concern.

First of all.. Who puts that much effort into making a comprehensive list of computer parts they don't want??

That's like going to a grocery store and taking the time to pick out all the food in the entire store you know you don't want, bringing it to the cashier and asking them to go get everything you don't have bundled up in your cart.

That's like going to a grocery store and taking the time to pick out all the food in the entire store you know you don't want, bringing it to the cashier and asking them to go get everything you don't have bundled up in your cart and proclaiming that you will take everything else.

Your son is awesome. Even after been disappointed with incorrect parts he manned up and tried to turn it around. Like others are suggesting, if his power supply caused the damages, they will most likely be held responsible for said damages, and the payout should be able to let you try again. Best of luck to you

shit happens. You're a good dad. Your son didn't get hurt and that's the main thing. It sounds like you handled it well. I see far too many friends getting cancer or dying or their kids. In the grand scheme, it will all work out. Hopefully you have insurance and if not, then maybe you and your son can start flipping some stuff Gary V style and make some $$ to fix the house damage and build another computer. My youngest broke a glass in his room tonight and thought I was going to flip out. All I cared about was that he didn't get hurt. I had to ask him to stop apologizing while I happily helped clean it up. My parents would lose their shit over mishaps. And for what? Your son will always remember how hard you tried. And to those who questioned him making a list of what not to buy, that's what I'd expect from my kids if they watched youtube clips with recommendations of this and how hard youtubers make sure to tell you not to buy this or that.

Hahah what?? he gave it a red hot stonking go even though his present consisted of exactly none of his dream parts - I think that says something about a person’s gratitude and I meant that as a compliment!

My statement stands. There was no "red hot stonking go". If you can't tell a completely fabricated lie from the truth... I don't know what to tell you. Nothing about this makes any sense. A PC doesn't just burst into flames. That's laughable.

Sure, the story is a bit dodgy. Possibly false. I can’t see why anyone would gain anything out of this lol but I see your point. Shall I correct my statement then - OP, your fictional kid is a good sport??

That was such a lovely gesture though. He will remember the thought for the rest of his life. I know it probably doesn’t feel like it now but even the effort you put in is very touching. Stuff can be replaced easily enough and no one was hurt which is the main thing.

If it helps, however he doesn’t like the parts, it’s unlikely that they just burst into flames. I kinda think it’s more on your son’s execution than your wrong parts(of course don’t tell him that). Next time just double check the list and you’re good to go /patontheback

Yeah sorry but PC parts are designed for safe assembly. You can't put in a power supply connector backwards. He'd have to have cut the molex connector and rewrite it, and even then it would probably just short/fuse out. I mean you could theoretically do it overclocking, but again it would probably short out/fuse out and just smolder first, as this gear is designed to take some abuse and not combust - that's a manufacturers worst case scenario.